PH international reserves post new high of $64 billion
MANILA, Philippines – The country’s gross international reserves (GIR) continued to break records and post a new high of $64 billion in February, a development, central bank officials said, should raise anew the level of comfort of foreign investors and creditors with the Philippines.
MANILA, Philippines – The country’s gross international reserves (GIR) continued to break records and post a new high of $64 billion in February, a development, central bank officials said, should raise anew the level of comfort of foreign investors and creditors with the Philippines.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported on Monday that the GIR, the country's total amount of foreign currencies and gold holdings managed by the BSP, reached $63.95 billion by the end of February.
The amount marked a 40-percent expansion from the $45.76 billion registered as of the same period in 2010. Moreover, the latest GIR was up by 0.6 percent from the previous historic high of $63.54 billion posted as of the end of January.
The latest GIR was enough to cover 10.5 months worth of imported goods and services, and was 6.1 times the country's foreign currency-denominated debts maturing within one year.
International standards say that a comfortable level of GIR is one that is enough to cover for at least four months worth of imports.
The BSP said the increase in the GIR in February was fueled in part by its income from foreign exchange operations and investments in foreign currency-denominated instruments, bulk of which were US treasuries.
Rising cost of gold, likewise, drove the value of the country's gold holdings, which are part of the GIR.
"Major inflows that contributed to the increase in the GIR level consisted of receipts from foreign exchange operations and income from investments abroad, as well as revaluation gains on the BSP's gold holdings arising from sustained increase in gold prices in the international market," BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said in a statement.
Inflows generated from investments, foreign exchange operations, and gold holdings are on top of the inflows from regular sources like remittances, export earnings, and foreign portfolio and direct investments.
BSP officials said the rising reserves of dollars, other foreign currencies, and gold have been building on the confidence of foreign investors and creditors in the country's ability to meet its external obligations.
Last November, credit rating firm Standard & Poor's raised the country's credit rating by a notch, citing partly the country's increasing capability to service obligations through the growing GIR.
In January, rival Moody's Investors Service cited the same thing and enhanced its outlook on the country from "stable" to "positive." The latter indicates a potential credit rating upgrade within the short term.
The country's continually expanding GIR has elicited proposals for the BSP to invest some of the GIR in higher-yielding instruments or ventures.
Currently, the BSP sticks with investing in virtually risk-free assets, such as US treasuries. The reserves are not primarily meant to generate much higher income, but to ensure availability of liquidity when the need for that arises, according to the BSP.
The central bank has projected that by the end of 2011, the GIR will have reached between $68 billion and $70 billion.
The amount marked a 40-percent expansion from the $45.76 billion registered as of the same period in 2010. Moreover, the latest GIR was up by 0.6 percent from the previous historic high of $63.54 billion posted as of the end of January.
The latest GIR was enough to cover 10.5 months worth of imported goods and services, and was 6.1 times the country's foreign currency-denominated debts maturing within one year.
International standards say that a comfortable level of GIR is one that is enough to cover for at least four months worth of imports.
The BSP said the increase in the GIR in February was fueled in part by its income from foreign exchange operations and investments in foreign currency-denominated instruments, bulk of which were US treasuries.
Rising cost of gold, likewise, drove the value of the country's gold holdings, which are part of the GIR.
"Major inflows that contributed to the increase in the GIR level consisted of receipts from foreign exchange operations and income from investments abroad, as well as revaluation gains on the BSP's gold holdings arising from sustained increase in gold prices in the international market," BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said in a statement.
Inflows generated from investments, foreign exchange operations, and gold holdings are on top of the inflows from regular sources like remittances, export earnings, and foreign portfolio and direct investments.
BSP officials said the rising reserves of dollars, other foreign currencies, and gold have been building on the confidence of foreign investors and creditors in the country's ability to meet its external obligations.
Last November, credit rating firm Standard & Poor's raised the country's credit rating by a notch, citing partly the country's increasing capability to service obligations through the growing GIR.
In January, rival Moody's Investors Service cited the same thing and enhanced its outlook on the country from "stable" to "positive." The latter indicates a potential credit rating upgrade within the short term.
The country's continually expanding GIR has elicited proposals for the BSP to invest some of the GIR in higher-yielding instruments or ventures.
Currently, the BSP sticks with investing in virtually risk-free assets, such as US treasuries. The reserves are not primarily meant to generate much higher income, but to ensure availability of liquidity when the need for that arises, according to the BSP.
The central bank has projected that by the end of 2011, the GIR will have reached between $68 billion and $70 billion.
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